Everything has changed
by wefallinlovewithstrangers
Summary: Ally has never had a lot of friends and she's always been fine with that. Her one good friend, her music and school has always been enough for her. When she meets Austin, she has no intention to try and break down his walls. Until she learns that she might need him for something. And as much as she just wants to go back to normal, she has to admit that everything has changed.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"_The sun is in the sky and it is gonna be a glorious day"_

It probably wouldn't be. It was only 7.00 a.m., but the clouds were dark enough to indicate a day full of rain. Bad days weren't that common in Miami, but I never minded the occasional rainy day. They made me feel comfortable.

_"So pour yourself some coffee, put your clothes back on and tell me your name"_

I sometimes felt like I should be born in England, or some other place where it rained more often than not. Sun just didn't work for me. My skin never tanned and I always seemed a little too hot for comfort.

_"Hearts are getting broken but I guess that's what they call growing up"_

"Not necessarily," I answered the guy singing on the radio.

"_But don't expect result because the kids around here don't give a f…"_

"Well, you got that right."  
"You have to stop talking to singing people, Ally, it's weird. Even weirder than chewing your hair." I turned around to see Trish. She was my best and, never mind you, only, friend, even though she could be quite harsh and rude at times. Being rude was never in my blood, so I guess we completed each other.

I met Trish on the first day of school. I never understood what she was really doing here, because she didn't really have anything with music. The school we went to was a little different than others. It was boarding school, but with a twist. We had special entertainment classes. We still had all our normal classes, like maths and English, but we also had singing, acting, dancing and all kinds of other classes. It was the kind of school I've been wanting to go to ever since I saw _Fame.  
_

Music had always been in my family. My father owned a music store and my mom loved singing. She was never particularly good at it, but her love for music was the reason I started to love music. When I was really little, I took piano lessons. It was the only instrument I really mastered at this point. I also started singing. As soon as I learned how to write, I started writing songs.  
In the beginning, they were terrible, but I kept at it and now, every once in a while, I wrote a song that I would actually be proud of. I never sang them for anyone. But that was a different story.

"People already know I'm weird," I answered Trish. "It is a lost cause, really." She shot me disapproving look but didn't argue. There was no arguing. I was right. Trish was my only friend. I was quite shy and a little eccentric. Or that's what I called myself. Most of the school preferred freaky. They never bothered me, though. It was the reason I loved being at this school. At my old school, I was always bullied, but here, ignoring me seemed to suffice. And as long as I had Trish and my songbook, I didn't really feel like I needed anyone else.

I took my backpack and pushed Trish out of our room. We shared a room since the first day of school. The room assignments were the only thing that had gotten me really nervous at the first day of school, but luckily there were rooms for two and I loved sharing with Trish. She could be quite annoying, and not to forget terribly messy, but she was fun to be around and she always left me alone when I needed a little alone time.

The day went pretty ordinary. I finished all my homework in class, because I really didn't need to pay a lot of attention: I already got everything anyway. Trish didn't do anything in class. Not that she ever did.

When we finally walked out of math, I was very aware of the smile on my face and I was even more aware of the judging look on Trish's. I ignored her. We had singing lessons and those happened to be my second favourite, right after piano of course. I sat down next to Trish. On my other side was a red headed guy. I had seen him around lots of times, which wasn't weird since I had been at this school for two years, but I honestly had no idea what his name was. I didn't know most of the names of my classmates, I realized, but I figured they wouldn't know mine either, so really, it was only fair. Our teacher, Ms. Knight, snapped me out of my thoughts. My smile faltered after she'd only spoken one sentence. Because it was the sentence I never wanted to hear.

"Up for her solo today is Ally Dawson. Are you ready dear?"  
I knew she wouldn't take no for an answer. I looked at my hands, feeling the eyes of my classmates on me. Weighing my options. Weighing the consequences. And I ran.


	2. Chapter 2

I knew this day would come. Ms. Knight picked someone else to sing a solo in front of the class every lesson. She would let them pick their own song, and then they had to sing it. Nobody was ever really nervous for it, because everyone knew Ms. Knight couldn't care less about the notes you hit or missed. You could sound like nails on a chalkboard and she would love it. Because she only cared about the fact that you dared. And everyone always dared. It was their dream to perform in front of an audience: why would you go to a music school if it wasn't?

But it was different for me. I didn't want to be in the spotlights, I wanted to be behind the curtain. The mastermind behind it all, if you want. I wanted to write the songs, not sing them. I wanted to be a pop star growing up, but it only took one accident to wash all my dreams of being on a stage away. Being on a stage would be considered a nightmare from that day on. I shuddered at the thought.

No, I was never one to skip class, but I didn't have any other choice. I had to face Ms. Knight sooner or later, I knew that, I just chose later. Suddenly, my foot hit something. A soft yelp sounded in the back of my head, and I could almost see myself losing my balance. I could definitely _feel _myself hitting the ground. Except it wasn't the ground.

"Watch where you're going, dammit!" I didn't recognize the voice, but it was the voice of a boy. I looked up, looking right in two big, brown, angry eyes. That were attached to quite an attractive, blonde haired boy. I quickly crawled off him. Sitting in the grass, I took a good look at him. Nope, definitely hadn't seen him before. Then I realized he was waiting for me to talk, brow raised, eyes impatient.

"Oh my god, I'm so so sorry. I just didn't see you. Which is weird, since you're not that small, but I guess I was just so lost in thought…" I stopped, seeing his expression change. He just looked bored. I felt a blush creeping up, and I got up, trying to walk away with at least a little bit of my dignity intact, but I realized I had no idea where I was, let alone where I should go. How did I get here? I hadn't been walking that long! I turned around and looked at the guy again. By now, he seemed more amused than anything else. I could swear he could just start laughing at me at any moment. But he kept still.

"You, uhm," I started, my voice shaking, "you don't happen to know where I am, do you?"  
"You're in Miami," he deadpanned, "did you escape from a mental hospital or something? Are you on drugs?" I made noise that could only be interpreted as astonished.  
"Me? Drugs? Are you kidding me? And thank you very much, captain obvious. Now _where _in Miami would I be? And I mean where around Miami International Music School, in particular."  
"Ah, so I take it you're enrolled in MIMS then. Shouldn't you be in class?" He sounded so smug, that I couldn't help but snap.  
"Shouldn't you be minding your own business?" He raised an eyebrow, and then turned around, clearly done talking to me. I growled, and realizing he was not going to be any help at all, I staggered in the direction I came from, figuring I would find my way back.

I did. It took me a while, but after an hour or so, I could finally throw myself on bed, enjoying the last few minutes of peace before class would be over and Trish would be here. I looked at my songbook. I hadn't written for a while. Mostly because I couldn't find a lot of inspiration.

My parents divorced two years ago, when I was fifteen. It was this traumatic event that made my song writing go into overload. I wrote hundreds of songs, most crappy, some amazing. Writing songs felt like the only thing that could help me to get rid of those terrible emotions inside of me. The anger, the sadness, the utter devastation: I could get it all out on paper, so I wouldn't have to take it out on people.

But lately, I was starting to realize that I had gotten everything out of me. I didn't have anything else to pull from. That experience was done, over. And now, I had nothing to write about.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining. I much rather have nothing to write about than go through another traumatic experience, but sometimes I wished my head could just make up stuff to write about. That it didn't always have to be real. But I guess that's the way all good songs are written: they have to come from a real place.

The door slammed and I looked up. It was Trish, like I expected. And like I expected, she wanted answers.  
"What the hell, Ally? Where the hell were you? Ms. Knight is going to give you hell!" she yelled.  
"Trish, calm down. And stop saying hell. I was taking a little walk," I sighed.  
"A little walk? Ally, you had to sing!"  
"Yeah, why did you think I needed the walk?" I muttered.  
"Don't talk to me like that." God, sometimes, she did sound a lot like my mother. But I knew I could sound like hers too. I did quite often, actually. "I know you have stage fright, okay. But this is not a stage, it's a classroom. These are your classmates!"  
"It doesn't matter Trish! It's still people! I don't even sing in front of you, let alone a bunch of people that hate me."  
"They don't hate you."  
"They don't like me either." Trish didn't argue with that. "Look, I will talk to Ms Knight, okay. Explain. But I couldn't, not with everyone there. I'm sure she'll understand, she is a nice person." Trish let out a snicker, that probably meant she didn't believe me, but she didn't press it. She had better things to do.

Like painting her nails.


	3. Chapter 3

We almost always ate in the canteen. School took care of all our meals, and they usually weren't that bad. This night, it was really, really bad.  
"Is this even food? I mean, legally?" Trish said, a disgusted tone. I couldn't disagree with her. It was supposed to be spaghetti. Now let me tell you, my dad was an amazing Italian cook, and this did not look like spaghetti is supposed to look. I peeked through the class counter.

"I can't be a hundred per cent sure. It could also be something a cat threw up." I stacked my plate full anyways, figuring that I would need to eat and there wasn't much else to choose from. I turned away, ready to walk to our table, when I suddenly saw something, or rather someone, in the corner of my eye.

I wanted to stop myself, I really did, but my mind was faster than my body and I couldn't help but bump in to the person. And I couldn't help my plate from dumping it's entire content on this persons t-shirt.

"Seriously? What is wrong with you? Is this your way of flirting with someone?" My eyes opened even wider than I already did. No. It couldn't possibly be… "You just can't get enough of me, can you?" The guy, from this afternoon. The guy I fell on, and now my food fell on. He was wearing the same black V-neck as this afternoon, only now, I had coloured it red with spaghetti sauce.

"I am so…"  
"Sorry. Yeah, I know," he interrupted, irritated. "Honestly, you have kind of put a damper on my first school day." First. That explained why I didn't recognize him. I might not know a lot of names, but I knew every face in this place. I wanted to say something else. Apologize. Make him not hate me. But he turned away and left the canteen.

Trish gasped. "Liar! He's not kinda cute, he is absolutely smoking!" I had told her about my run in with him, of course. She laughed when I told her. She laughed even harder when I told her he was cute.

"He is smoking. Literally. Smoke. Out of his ears. Oh god, did you see that?" I didn't think I'd ever been so embarrassed. Well, if you didn't count the day I went on a stage, obviously. My statement only made Trish laugh harder. We walked to our table, me without food. Not only did I not want to go through the embarrassment of getting a second plate, I also lost my appetite. Trish didn't eat a lot either, but that probably had something to do with the substance of the food.

Our comfortable silence was disrupted when a plate was set at our table. Till my surprise, the red head sat next to us.  
"I saw you today at singing class, didn't I?" he asked. I nodded, not answering because I knew the follow up question. "Why'd you ran?"  
"Long story," I said. "I'm sorry…" I waited expectantly, hoping he would get the hint and fill in his name. He didn't, he just looked at me. Trish didn't have a lot of patience.

"Who are you, exactly?" The red head looked a little offended.  
"My name's Dez. How do you not know that, we've been in the same classes for this entire year!"  
"Oh, I'm sorry, I don't pay attention to people I do not care about." I shot Trish a warning look. We didn't have any other friends, being nice to this guy might not be such a bad idea. I was going to start a conversation, when I noticed the blonde guy walking towards us. Oh god, he was going to yell at me. I braced myself for impact when he reached our table.

"Dez? Do you know these people?" Okay, not what I expected. The red head nodded.  
"Yeah, they're in a lot of my classes actually, I think they'll be in a lot of yours too. Girls, this is Austin, he is new at this school. Mate, these are Ally and Trish. Careful, she's scary," he said, pointing at Trish. She didn't even look embarrassed. I would describe her look more as smug, and maybe even proud. The blonde guy sat down next to Dez and looked at me.

"That one might be scary, but this one has assaulted me. Twice."  
"I did not…" I stuttered, "…do that on purpose. I'm just a little clumsy." He cocked his head to one side, but he didn't say anything.

"Hey, are you eating that?" Dez pointed at Trish's still untouched plate.  
"No," she started, and he immediately started shoving the food into his mouth. "But that doesn't mean I won't," she finished, shooting him a glare.

Dez stopped chewing, a mouthful of spaghetti. He then seemed to realize something, his eyes became big and he got up. He ran away, and I saw the confused look on Austins face. Must have been how I looked too. I was wondering if Austin would stay here, but after a couple of seconds of doubt, he got up and went after Dez. He disappeared.  
I would almost say he was like an illusion.


	4. Chapter 4

Yesterday, when I wrote it, it sounded so good.

_"1-2-3, you disappear.  
Aint no second guessing, you're impressive,  
but you're just an illusion."_

But this morning during history and science, I had been replaying the song in my head and it just wasn't working. I couldn't find the right melody for it. Perhaps it was because I had to talk to Ms. Knight in my free period and I was really nervous.

But perhaps it was just bad. Maybe I needed heartbreak to write songs. I sighed, agitated, and in an angry flash, I ripped the piece of paper out of my songbook, crumpled it up and threw it away. Time to face punishments.

"I get it, Ally, I do, but you can't be in performing school if you won't perform." Ms. Knight said it friendly but firm. I knew that this was it. I could already feel tears flooding my eyes. She was going to tell me to leave. I would have to go back home, work in my dad's music store, I would have to leave Trish and Dez and Austin and… wait, why did I care about Dez and Austin?

"So I'll be giving you until the end of the year." Those words got me out of my trance. Crap, what had she said? I really needed to start paying more attention to people when they spoke. I must have looked at lost as I felt, because Ms. Knight sighed and repeated herself.  
"If you can't get over your stage fright before the end of the year, you will have to leave this school. Understood, miss Dawson?" I nodded, but I couldn't get myself to smile. I would never get over my stage fright. But at least I would have almost half a year left?

_"I ain't no fake Houdini, I put a spell on you.  
I'm something like a genie, girl I'll make your wish come true." _

I gasped. That sound. The melody didn't sound familiar, neither did the voice, but those lyrics… No, there was no way. I didn't even pay attention to Ms. Knight as I turned around and stormed out of the classroom. I couldn't be mistaking. That was my song. MY song!

The person I saw in the music room, with a guitar in his hand, singing my song, was the last person I expected.  
"Austin? Where did you get that song?" I realized I sounded hysterical and that must be the reason Austin looked up like a ghost turned up.  
"Hi Ally, are you here to hurt me again?" he smirked, regaining his posture.

"WHERE. DID. YOU. GET. THAT. SONG!" By now, I had full on lost it. That was my song. And just because I wasn't planning on singing it, didn't mean anyone else could.  
"I uhm, found it in the trash," he answered a little sheepish. I was too upset to wonder what he was doing in the trash.  
"That is MY song. I threw that away. I wrote that. You can't have it, I wrote that!" I shrieked.  
"Oh. Okay, I get it." He handed me the crumpled up paper, shrugging. "It's pretty good, 's all." I took the paper, but didn't move.  
"Really? You thought it was good?" A blush crept up on my face and I cursed it.  
"Yeah, sure. It just needs a little… star quality."

He sat back down, took the guitar and started playing. And I had to say, it sounded amazing. He sounded amazing. And he looked amazing too, the way he hung over his guitar a little bit, his dirty blonde hair flopping before his eyes. He stopped singing and looked at me, expectantly.

"You're an amazing singer," I said. It was true. "I wish I could sing like that." He shrugged.  
"I'm sure you're not bad. I'll hear you sing in class then." He got up, ready to leave again.  
"Not probable," I muttered, convinced he couldn't hear. He did.

"That's why you ran out of class when you ran me over? Didn't wanna sing?" How the hell did he know that. "What is it, mean people in the class?" I shook my head. "Stage fright?" My face must've spoken for me, because he smirked and shrugged again. "Logical explanation. I can't believe they let you in this school if you can't perform." My face fell and I felt a sting in my belly.

"They didn't know. If I don't perform before the end of the year, I'll get kicked out. But it was fun while it lasted, I guess." Austin studied my face for a while.  
"I'm a great performer," he said.  
"Gee, modest much," I snickered. He shrugged. It was a habit.  
"It's true. Hey, I will teach you how to perform. Get you over your stage fright."  
"If?" I asked cautiously. He furrowed his brows.  
"Why does there have to be an if?"  
"There always is with guys like you."  
"Like me?"

Now he genuinely looked pissed. But I knew I was right. I always was.

"Yeah. The kind of guy that finds himself really cool. With the hair and the smirk. And the leather jacket and the holes in your jeans. The guy that builds a wall and expects people to find him interesting for it and break it down. It won't work for me, you know."  
"Fine," he said. "Fair enough. I will help you get over your stage fright, IF you will give me your song. I don't get what the problem with that is anyway, since you threw it away, but if you want me to ask for something in return, this is it. I want the song."

And I wanted to tell him to stick the song somewhere the sun don't shine, but I was raised very well, so I just puffed annoyed and left.

It wasn't till I watched him perform a cover of _Lies _by McFly in class later that day, that I realised he was really, really good. And he was my only chance.


	5. Chapter 5

Piano was my favourite class of the day. I was the best piano player in that class, and the teacher knew it, so he left me alone most of the time, giving me time to practise my own pieces. But today, I wasn't really doing much. Because in the corner was Austin, watching Dez struggle with the piano, not seeming to be very interested in playing. And I needed to ask him something. And I really didn't want to.

"You should go now," Trish said. I had told her about my plan and surprisingly, she didn't find it such a bad idea. I knew she desperately wanted me to get over my stage fright, because if I left, she didn't have any friends left. And although she pretended like she didn't care, I knew she wasn't as sure of herself as she made it seem. I sighed.

"You're stalling, Ally."  
"Stalling? What? I'm not stalling," I said, my voice high, like it always was when I was lying. "Funny word, you know, stalling. Bet you can't say that ten times fast. Stallingstallingstall…" Trish didn't say anything, she just hit me. "Auw! Okay, I'm going!" I needed another physical push before I actually went.

When I approached Austin and Dez, they both looked up surprised. Dez seemed happy surprised, Austin looked a little smug. He probably knew I caved. That boy seemed to read me like an open book.  
"Hi Al-ly," he said, stretching the l's. "You've come to ask me something?"  
And I was, I really really was. But that smug little smile on his face, that little mischievous twinkle in his eyes… My pride took over. I couldn't.

"I actually just came to tell Dez you're placing your hands wrong." I moved his left hand. I wasn't lying about the wrong placement, it just wasn't where I came from. Knowing I couldn't hold it in much longer, I stormed out of class.

I heard footsteps behind me, and figuring it was Trish, I started ranting.  
"You know what Trish, I can do it alone! I don't need that cocky Austin whatever his last name is to overcome my stage fright!"  
"It's Moon." I stiffened.

That wasn't Trish. I turned around and saw Austin standing there, his arms crossed. I stared at my feet, too embarrassed to even look him in the eyes. I heard him sigh, and I saw his black Converse appearing in my sight, meaning he was standing quite close.

"Look Ally, I know you don't believe me, but I really do want to help. I'm not as mean as you think I am, and honestly, you don't really have a right to judge me, because you don't know me. I don't even know what your problem is. If that's what you really want then fine, I'll leave you alone, but you do need me to overcome your stage fright and you know it." I swallowed, weighing my options.

Whenever I had to make a choice, I would make a quick pro's – cons list in my head.

Pro's: the change that I would actually get over my stage fright was remarkably bigger. It might be fun to hang out with Austin. Cons: it might really not be fun to hang out with Austin.

I sighed. I knew I had to swallow my pride and go for it.

"Okay. If you try to help me, really try! You can get my song for the next class." I looked up at him and saw a huge smile on his face. And for the first time, it seemed like a smile rather than a smirk. And for the first time, I genuinely smiled back at him.

"Could you please not touch that?"

It was the fifth time I had asked him to leave my stuff alone. It was the fifth time he ignored me. Austin and I had our first session planned for today. I sent Trish out, which didn't make her very happy. Austin was sitting on the floor, his back against my bed, touching everything in close proximity to him. He had only been here for a minute and I was already tempted to throw him out. "Austin, please! Stop touching my stuff and let's get to work." He finally looked up, and then slouched down a little bit, making himself more comfortable.

"Okay. So, first step. Why do you have stage fright?" I looked at him in pure horror and that look didn't escape him. He giggled. It actually sounded kind of cute. "I can't help you get over your fear if you don't tell me where it comes from. Do you not know the basics of human psychology?"  
"Funny, you never struck me as a psychology kind of guy," I said sarcastically.  
"Well, you'll find I'm full of surprises. Now spill." It was silent for a little while. Austin was clearly debating on letting me stall for a moment or pressing the matter. He chose the first, which was a good choice.

"I will tell you. But you have to promise you won't laugh." He nodded. "When I was little, I wanted to be a pop star. Writing my own material, playing instruments, singing in front of thousands of people. It was my dream." Austin nodded again, interrupting me.

"That's my dream! Apart from the writing part."

"Well, the writing part is the only part that's left. And the instrument part, partly. Please don't interrupt me," I interrupted myself. He rolled his eyes, but remained silent.

"When I was 14, my dad thought it would be a good idea to enrol me in the shool's talent show. I actually thought it was a good idea too. I was nervous, but not really. And when I started, it went okay! A little shaky, but I wasn't bad. The bad part was that the lightning guy put this really big cable on the stage." I stopped a second, memorizing the moment and shuddering with shame and fear again. "And as you've found out, I'm a little clumsy. So I fell. And I mean, face planted. Broke my nose, actually. Blood was pouring out of it, and then I started crying, and I ran off."

I stopped again. "The bad thing is that I never heard the end of it. They bullied me, from that point on. Tormented me. I didn't have any friends. And then I got here. But if I get up and sing, and do something like this again, everything will be ruined."

I stopped, now completely, because I knew if I continued I would cry. I just sat there, on the piano bench in front of my keyboard, pressing some keys. I saw Austin move. He sat down next to me, pressing some keys to. It sounded good together. It almost sounded like the chords to a song.

"You know you don't have to be afraid of that here, Ally. If you fall here, nobody will bully you."  
"Yes they will," I whispered, my voice cracking. "Nobody really likes me, except Trish."  
"That's not true. Dez likes you. So do I. I won't let anyone bully you Ally. I promise."

I looked up at him, and I could see in his eyes that he was being honest with me. He actually looked at me like I was something he cared about. Maybe he wasn't like the other guys. Or he was a really good actor.

"Now," he bumped his shoulder against mine, "I think this is enough therapy for today. We'll continue tomorrow and then you can sing for me. I will be honest but nice about it, okay?" He got up. I nodded, but didn't answer. He walked to the door. His hand on the handle, he turned around.

"You know Ally, you just have to break down these walls. Then you'll be fine." He closed the door, and I grabbed my songbook.


	6. Chapter 6

Funny that both times I had written a good song in the last couple of weeks, Austin had been the inspiration behind it. Now with Illusion, he didn't have to know about that, but I wanted him to hear this song.

Or, I wanted him to read the song, because I sure wasn't going to sing it for him. So that morning I was very excited to get to class. I'm always excited, don't get me wrong, and I love biology, but this time I was extra excited. I darted into class, Trish behind me. It was too early in the morning for her to function, so I ignored her, knowing she wouldn't talk to me anyway.

My eyes scanned the room, looking for the familiar blonde hair. Finding it, I started walking towards him, until I saw that he was talking with someone. The girl had long black hair and was really beautiful.

I had actually talked to Kira a couple of times and she was always very nice to me. Even Trish liked her a little bit, although she'd never admit it. So why was it that my stomach seemed to turn around, when I saw her talking to Austin? It was probably just because I was really excited to show him my song. I decided against interrupting them, because Austin was smiling and seemed to enjoy talking to Kira, and I took my place next to Trish.

The chair on the other side of me moved. I looked up, a little surprised, since nobody actually ever sat next to me. Austin looked back at me, smirking.

"Morning Ally. You look way too excited for class."  
"I love biology! But that's not what I'm excited for," I laughed. "I actually wanted to talk to you. I…"

The door slammed shut.  
"Hello class." I stopped talking as the teacher started his lesson. I figured I could talk to Austin after class. I should have known he doesn't work that way.

"Psst Ally. What did you wanted to talk to me about?" I shook my head, putting my finger to my lips, signalling him to be silent. He wasn't.

"It must be important, since you're all hung up about it. What's up?" I looked at the teacher. He was standing with his back to the class, talking about DNA. I already knew all of this. I guess I could talk to Austin real quick. I turned towards him, leaning closer so I could whisper. I didn't want to disturb the lesson.  
"Yesterday, I actually wrote…"

"Miss Dawson, would you like to tell me what's so important that it has to be discussed during my explanation about RNA and DNA?" I shot up. Of course, just my luck.

Now you don't understand. I never break the rules. Never. I would rather break my own arm. I believe rules are there for a reason. I obey them. I like them. And now, the first time I've broken a rule in years, I can't even get the first words out without being caught. I slummed back in my chair, ashamed. It must be karma.

"I never expected this from you, miss Dawson. You have detention today." I shot back up again. Detention? I didn't get detention. You had got to be kidding me.  
"Now that's not really fair, sir," I heard Austin say next to me.  
"What are you doing, stop it," I hissed, convinced he would only make it worse.  
"Ally was just telling me to shut up." I raised my eyebrows. Why was he taking the blame for me? Truth be told, it was kind of his fault: if he wouldn't have pushed me, I wouldn't have said a word. But I didn't expect him to get detention for me. Neither did I want him to.

"That's not true, it was me," I said softly, not daring to raise my voice and make a bigger fool out of myself than I already had. Austin was going to say something else, but I jabbed my elbow in his side. He actually whimpered a little, the nerve. He was just focusing more attention on me, and I did not appreciate this kind of attention. The teacher shook his head.

"I'm very disappointed in you, miss Dawson. As for you, mister Moon, you better get your act together or this is going to be the next school you get kicked out of. You don't have that many room for mistakes left. Detention is now for both of you," the teacher said. He looked at Austin for a while, before turning around and continuing his class.

When I turned to Austin, he was slummed back in his chair, his arms crossed and his eyes dark. But he didn't look angry, he looked more hurt. I wanted to ask him what was wrong, but I couldn't break the rules again. I figured I could ask him during lunch.

He wasn't at lunch. Nor was he at the other classes that day. I didn't expect him to show up in detention, but when I walked in the classroom that afternoon, he was already there. We didn't spoke, because Ms. Knight, who did detention, was there too. She took some papers from her desk and looked at me.

"I have a lot to do, so I'm leaving you here. I come back to open the door in two hours. Ally, I do not know why you are here, but I'm believing that you are still trustworthy."  
"I am," I interrupted her. I couldn't believe she was actually doubting me. She had been my favourite teacher ever since I'd been here and I always knew I was her favourite student as well. She nodded to me, a small smile on her lips.  
"Then I'm sure you won't mind keep mister Moon in check, will you?" I heard Austin snicker, but I decided ignoring him would probably be the best policy right now.  
"Yes ms. Knight," I spoke softly. She left the room, and for a minute it was silent. Only for a minute though.

"So, since you got detention trying to tell me something, it must be pretty darn important. You can tell me now." Austin sat on my table. I sighed.  
"We're not allowed to talk in detention." Austin looked at me for a couple of seconds, his face stunned, and then he just started laughing.

"For god's sake Ally, no one is here. They do not have security camera's on us, or something."  
"You don't know that for sure," I sputtered, but even I could see that I was being a little paranoid, so I smiled at him, showing him I was kidding. Then, I gave him my songbook. "I wrote a song."

He took a long time to read it. And every second that passed, I got more nervous. Maybe he hated it. Maybe he didn't like that I used his words in the chorus.

When he finally looked up, he was smiling. I smiled back, still unsure, because he hadn't actually said anything yet.

"This is amazing Ally. You should sing this one for your first performance." I blushed.  
"Do you really think this could be the right song?"  
"It's perfect! You're actually telling yourself to sing the song, in your song! It's genius!"

He seemed so genuinely excited that I couldn't help but laugh.

"Thanks Austin." My smile faltered. "I just… I'm not sure if I can. Sing the song, I mean." Austin didn't say anything, so I continued. "I know you said it would be fine, but what if it won't? I just…" I took a deep breath. "I tried to perform after that terrible thing, once. And I couldn't. I mean, physically couldn't. My voice was gone, I was shaking, I nearly puked." Austin suppressed a giggle. "That's not funny! I'm already losing my mind just thinking about this performance!"

I was starting to blabber. It was something I did when I got nervous. And the performance made me very nervous.

Austin took my hand, which immediately made me stop talking. I just stared at him. I must've looked horrified, because he took his hand away again. I tried to ignore the burning sensation in my hand where he had touched it. I was now officially losing my mind.  
"Ally, would you relax?" Austin said, but he seemed to know it wouldn't happen. "Maybe you couldn't back then. But you can now!" He got up and walked to the other side of the room.

"You're not alone this time, you know." I don't know where he got it from, but he returned with a guitar in his hand. I didn't say anything, curious as to what his plan was. He couldn't possibly be expecting me to sing right now. It was not happening, no matter how pleading he would look at me with those big brown puppy eyes.

But he didn't ask me to sing. Instead, he started singing himself. I couldn't hide my smile when I recognized the song. I loved this song, always had.

_"Walk away, if you want to,  
It's okay, if you need to,  
But you can run, but you can never hide,  
From the shadow that's creeping up behind you._

_There's magic running through your soul,  
But you can't have it all."_

Without even really thinking about it, I started singing along to the chorus. Austin smiled at the sound of my voice, and suddenly, I didn't feel nervous any more.

"_Whatever you do – I'll be two steps behind you.  
Wherever you go – I'll be there to remind you  
That it only takes a minute of your precious time,  
to turn around._

_I'll be two steps behind."_

* * *

**Song is Two Steps Behind by Def Leppard. I was inspired by the version ft. Taylor Swift. Listen to it, it's awesome.


	7. Chapter 7

I couldn't sleep that night. Usually, there was a reason for my sleepless nights: tests, fights with Trish, missing home. But this time, the only thing I could think about was Austin. And he couldn't possibly be the reason for my insomnia this night, could he?

He was the first person here that heard me sing. Not even Trish had heard me. I made very sure that she wasn't here when I was playing my songs, or singing along to the radio.

I hadn't actually talked to Austin about the singing. He had just put the guitar away, smiled at me and went back to his desk, where he had spent the remaining time in detention staring outside the window. I hadn't made a big deal about it, since we weren't actually supposed to talk in detention, but something in me wished he had talked to me.

I enjoyed talking to Austin. He was the first person since Trish that I could feel comfortable with. I expected to talk to him on our way to our rooms, but at the end of detention, Ms. Knight had sent me away and kept Austin there to talk to her.

I was wondering what it was about. When she told him she wanted to talk to him, his eyes had turned dark again. By now, I'd figured out that dark eyes never meant anything good. He was either angry, sad or hurt. It was the same colour brown that his eyes had turned when the biology teacher had said that he didn't have many room for mistakes left. I still didn't know what he had meant by that. Forgot to ask him.

And I had to admit, I was a little bit scared to ask him. I might not want to know the answer.

Realizing sleep was not happening anytime soon, I put on a sweater and some sweatpants and walked out of my room, being as quiet as I possibly could, not wanting to wake up Trish.  
There was only one other place, besides my room, that I liked to go to when I was thinking or writing.

It wasn't really a roof, because it was quite small. But when the school had put an extra window in the library, because there weren't that many, the window stuck out a little bit. On top of it was a little roof. If you kept your legs under you, you could sit on it, and if you would lean on the big roof that was a little slanting, you could even lie down. I love it there.

And apparently, I wasn't the only one. I'd been coming here regularly since I got into this school, and I had never seen anyone else on it. But when I opened the window to climb on the roof, I heard a soft noise, like something was moving up there.

"It's occupied. Find your own," a voice said harshly. It sounded cracked, like the person had been crying. And just the thought of the person crying, broke my heart in pieces. I hated seeing people cry. And although I had never seen him in particular cry, just the thought of him being sad or hurt made me want to hug him and fix the world.

"Austin? It's me. Can I come up?" I said softly. If he didn't want me there, I would go. Maybe he just needed a little time alone.  
"Yes." It was barely audible, but the way he spoke told me he didn't need a little time alone. He needed someone there. And for some reason, I wanted to be that someone.

He was sitting there, his guitar next to him, not moving. He was just staring in the distance. He looked broken. I sat down next to him, quietly, not wanting to push him to tell me anything if he didn't want to. But after a couple of seconds, he started talking, clearly wanting to get it out.

"Do you know what Ms. Knight told me? That if I would get detention again, I'd get kicked out of school. It's bullshit, really, I haven't had any trouble here at all and yet they have decided I'm a lost cause." I cringed at the swear word, but didn't say anything. The tone in his voice hurt my heart. He didn't sound angry. He sounded flat, like he had lost hope.

"Austin? What happened before you got here?" I whispered, afraid that the sound of my voice would scare him away. It didn't.

"My parents have to move around a lot. So I moved around a lot. Switched a lot between schools. In the beginning, I tried to fit in. But right when I got friends, we moved again. So I stopped caring. No, that's not true, I stopped trying. I still cared. But I never made friends. And when you're alone, kids can smell that. They can be really, really mean, Ally."

He was silent for a couple of seconds. I couldn't say anything. I didn't know what. "I learned to defend myself by hitting them before they hit me. Making them scared before they even thought about being mean to me. So I got kicked out of a lot of schools, for fighting. But I haven't done anything here, Als. They just won't give me a chance." His voice broke at the end, and I could tell that he was trying to hold back his tears.

Hell, I was trying to hold back my tears.

I wanted to do something. Make him feel better. Fix him. But I couldn't.

I reached out to his guitar.  
"What're you doing?" he asked softly.  
"You sang to me when I felt like crap, I'm returning the favour," I smiled. He didn't say anything, so I took a deep breath, and started playing chords on the guitar.

Now I'm not a good guitar player, but I knew the perfect song. A song that said better what I wanted to say than I ever could. And so I started. Softly, because the only person that was allowed to hear, that had to hear, was sitting right next to me.

_ "I can't fix you,  
You've gotta fight these demons on your own.  
And I can't save you, but I promise you,  
You'll never be alone.  
Take my hand and take a deep breath,  
You don't have a lot of chances left._

_When the road is long and it's dark as the night,  
If you get too scared, just hold me tight.  
you're the only one that can make things right,  
I can't fix you._

_When the road is long and you think you're gonna fall,  
There's a still small voice beyond temptation's call.  
So the choice is yours,  
carry on, or lose it all._

_I can't fix you. I can't fix you." _

I put the guitar next to me, not saying anything. Austin didn't say anything either, but he looked… better. Less lonely. And then I felt his hand on mine. Maybe it was the darkness, maybe it was his weakness, I don't know where I got the nerve, but I laid my head on his shoulder. A second later, his head rested on mine, and I couldn't help but smile.

"You were right," he said softly, "about the fact that I built a wall around me. But you were also wrong. I never wanted you to break it down."  
"I never did."  
"No, but you built a door. And that's more than anyone's ever done."

* * *

**Song is I can't fix you by Sasha Pieterse


	8. Chapter 8

The next few days were very uneventful. I hardly spoke to Trish. She was crazy busy organizing the school dance. Everyone was very excited for it. I wasn't planning to go.

When I was walking through the hall, I saw Austin talking to Kira. Dez was standing a couple lockers further, so I walked to him instead, not wanting to interrupt Austin's conversation.

"Hi Ally. I don't know what you did with Austin, but he's much more cheery lately. So good job," Dez called out. I blushed, wishing he wouldn't talk so loud.  
"Thanks Dez. I didn't do anything really…"  
"Yeah you did," he interrupted me. "A couple of days ago, he said the school dance was stupid. Now he's talking about asking a girl!" Dez moved a little closer to me, like he was going to tell me a big secret. "He hasn't said it in so many words, but I think he's going to ask you."

My heart stopped beating for a second.  
"Pfft, what?" I laughed, not even convincing myself. Seeing Austin turning around and walking towards us, I stopped myself from saying anything else and tried to remember how to breath. He couldn't possibly ask me. I couldn't dance to save my life. There was no way I was going to that dance, making a fool out of myself in front of the entire school.

"Hey Als, hi Dez. I've got good news. Guess what," Austin said with a smile.  
"There's an alien invasion?" Dez's eyes turned big and I wondered if he was actually being serious.  
"No," Austin grinned, "but almost as awesome!" I wanted to ask how an alien invasion could possibly be considered awesome, but decided against it. "Kira said yes!"

My heart dropped.

"Said yes to what?" Dez asked, clueless as ever. Austin bumped him against the arm.  
"To going to the dance with me, man! Yeez, you've not been paying a lot of attention, have you? Okay, so I have to find a suit or something because apparently it's all official and stuff and…"

I didn't even hear the rest of Austin's rambling on suits and ties.

So he didn't ask me. That was a good thing! I didn't even want to go. I was being an idiot. I couldn't dance. And Austin and I were just friends! It was good that he went with Kira, she was a nice girl. He could have asked Tilly!

This was, strictly spoken, all true. So why did I feel like someone just ripped open my chest, took my heart and stamped on it? I turned around and walked away, to the safety of my room, where I could maybe think for a second. Or cry with my head buried in my pillow. Either would work right now.

But I shouldn't have expected a little alone time. I had heard the footsteps behind me, but I hoped that if I ignored them, they would go away. When I slammed the door, I had hoped that sent a message. And since there was no knock, I guess it did.

What was wrong with me? Suddenly, I felt less sad and more confused, and maybe even a little bit angry. Angry at myself mostly, because I was acting stupid and I didn't know why. I went through my cd collection, thinking of a song that could make me feel a little better.

I settled on one of my favourite songs of all time. When my parents divorced, I couldn't listen to it, because it held to many memories. This was always their soundtrack. The song that would be playing in my head when they were sitting at the table during dinner, laughing. But now, I felt like holding on to past happiness might not be such a bad thing, and I put it on loud.

_"You were in college working part-time, waiting tables.  
Left a small town, never looked back."_

Knowing Trish wouldn't be back for a good while, I started humming along. And then, before I knew it, I was singing and dancing along, feeling a smile creep up on my face, remembering the good old times. When I still understood myself.

"_Do you remember we were sitting there by the water?  
You put your arm around me, for the first time.  
You made a rebel of a careless man's careful daughter,  
You are the best thing, that's ever been mine." _

The bridge came up. And then the slower part of the song. And suddenly, I heard a guy voice fill in.

"_I fell in love with a careless man's careful daughter,  
She is the best thing, that's ever been mine." _

I shrieked and turned around. Austin was leaning on the door, smirking.  
"You, Ally Dawson, are honestly the worst dancer I've ever seen in my entire life."  
"Wow, thanks Austin. You're so helping me over my stage fright this way," I said sarcastically.  
"Hey, you don't have to dance on stage. Actually, don't, please, ever." He was still laughing.

I put the music down.  
"How'd you know the lyrics? I never pictured you as a Taylor Swift fan." He sat next to me on bed.  
"How many times do I have to tell you? You'll find I'm full of surprises. I actually didn't picture you as a Taylor Swift fan either."  
"Oh, I love her," I said, truthfully. "This song in particular though. I always thought this song was perfect to describe my parents' marriage." I sighed. "And then they broke up and it was all terrible."

"Your parents' divorce was hard on you, wasn't it?"  
"Yeah. My dad fell out of love with my mom, it wasn't his fault. But he broke her heart and I hated him for it. Not anymore, though, I think I get it. It's just…" I stopped.

"You're kind of the careless man's careful daughter, then?" Austin asked. I nodded.  
"That's a good way to put it, perhaps. People are not supposed to suddenly fall out of love after so many years. It's not the way it's supposed to be. He broke her heart. Maybe that's why I never break anything. Rules, feelings, I want to keep everything intact."  
"You can't, though." Austin didn't elaborate and I didn't ask.

It was silent for a couple of second. I could tell Austin was debating on asking me if I was okay. I really hoped he didn't.  
"Als, what's wrong?"

His voice sounded so sincere, so sweet, that I almost started crying. But I couldn't cry, I couldn't show him something was wrong. And I definitely couldn't tell him what was wrong. Not only because I didn't really know myself, but because I knew it had something to do with him and Kira and dancing and I couldn't be so selfish as to ruin that for him.

"Oh I'm fine."

He giggled.  
"You're a terrible liar. You have to succeed at the performing part because you could never be an actor. Or dancer. Now what's up? It's not just the divorce thing. It's something else, as well."

I didn't say anything, but I let my smile fade away. I knew I couldn't lie very well, and with Austin, it was like it was impossible to even tell half the truth. But I didn't answer him. He would never guess what was really wrong. How could he, if I didn't even know?

"Is it the dance?" he said sympathetically. Breathing seemed to be exceptionally hard at that moment. "You wanna go, don't you? Dez told me you weren't going. I don't really know how he knows, perhaps he has been spending time with Trish, for the organisation of the dance and stuff? Anyway, if you want to go, you should! You don't need to dance, you can just go and have fun."

I couldn't help but let out a relieved smile. Thank god, he got only half the truth.  
"Yeah, no thanks. Everybody's dancing and I'll just stand there? And if someone would ever ask me to dance, which won't happen, but just in case, I would probably break their foot or something. Or mine. Nope, not happening."

Austin rolled his eyes.

"Al-ly, don't be a buzzkill. It'll be fine, I promise. It won't be as much fun without you." He looked at me with his pouty face, and I tried to resist. I really didn't want to go. But Trish had been pushing me to go, and now Austin… And I was always a people pleaser.

"Fine! Stop looking at me like that! Fine, I'll go. But I won't have fun, and it's on you for ruining my night," I threatened, but Austin didn't even hear it. He started smiling so big that I couldn't help but smile with him.  
"Yeah! That's awesome Als, it's gonna be great! You promise though, don't you? That you'll come?"

I nodded, knowing I would regret it.  
"Yeah, I promise."


	9. Chapter 9

I did regret it. I regretted it a lot.

I was standing in front of the mirror. Trish was curling my hair, which I didn't understand because it was naturally curly anyway, and every now and then she hit me with the burning curling iron and I would yelp in pain. I could only picture the rest of the night being exactly like this.

"Oh my God Ally, you're going to look so pretty. Austin is going to love you." I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not dressing for Austin, Trish, I'm dressing for me. It's much better that way."

"Yeah, sure, but if he loves it, that's a good thing!" she said.

"We're just friends," I muttered. "You have to hurry, if we don't go soon we'll be late, and I still have to get dressed." Trish rolled her eyes.

"We're not going to be late, Ally. Everybody else is simply early." I giggled, knowing she just quoted one of her favourite movies.

Once she was done with my hair, I walked in the bathroom to get dressed. I had picked out a very decent, nice dress, that was way over my knees and beige of colour. It was nice, but it didn't scream 'lookatme!'

Which was good, because I wanted as few people as possible to actually look at me. I looked in the mirror. I guess I looked okay. Trish had done some make-up, but she hadn't overdone it. A lot. Which was honestly really difficult for her, so I was very proud. I reached for my dress, knowing where it was. But the fabric that touched my fingers was not the cotton of my dress.

"Trish." I sounded calm. Too calm. Dangerously calm. "Where is my dress."  
"What, the grandma thing? Gone. You just have to wear that one," her voice sounded, and I threw open the bathroom door, wearing the dress she had laid down for me. I was furious.

"You can just throw away my…" I stopped dead in my tracks. I saw myself in the mirror. Or I think it was me. And I saw the smug look on Trish's face and I realized why. Because she had given me a dress that made me beautiful.

The dress was navy blue, short but not slutty, and it was made of a very soft satin like material. The top was dressed with lace and very tight, and the dress was very flowy around my legs, but I had to admit that it clung in just the right places. Meaning my butt. Trish threw me a pair of black peep toes, that weren't so high I would fall immediately, but high enough to make me look a little older.

"You, Ally Dawson, look absolutely stunning. It doesn't matter who you're trying to impress tonight, you got it," Trish said, and she sounded genuinely proud of me. I smiled.

"I impressed myself, which means you're right. I can do anything tonight."

Except walk on heels. I really couldn't walk on heels, not even tonight.

When Trish and I walked into the gym, that looked gorgeous with all the flowers and decorations, I had to clung to her in order to not face plant on my entrance. Trish looked very beautiful also, and when I saw Dez make his way towards us, I could tell she impressed someone, as well. We made some small talk, and walked to a table, and I actually had fun.

"Hi guys!" I turned around. My smile fell. Austin looked very handsome in his… outfit. He wore black jeans without holes, a white t-shirt and a blazer, of which he had rolled up the sleeves. It clearly wasn't a suit, but it was very neat for his doing and he looked amazing. That wasn't the reason my smile fell. That reason was standing next to him.

Kira was wearing a red, tight dress, that made her figure look amazing. Her hair was up and she was glowing with happiness. She looked beautiful, and I scolded at myself for not being happier to see her. She was always nice to me and she would be good for Austin. I should stop being an idiot. I didn't even know what was wrong with me.

"Ally…" Austin's voice shook me out of my thoughts. I looked up at him. He was looking at me, with a somewhat dazed expression on his face. "Ally, you look… You are…"

"Spit it out mate," Dez said, ruining the moment. We all laughed.

"You are beautiful," Austin finally said. For some reason, the fact that he said I was beautiful and not that I looked beautiful made my heart beat a little faster and I felt my stomach turning. I smiled, and wanted to say something back, but he was already turning around to Kira.

"Let's go dance," he said to her, and the excitement was gone.

I didn't have a lot of fun after that. Trish and Dez danced with some kids from school, and even though they came back to check up on me every couple of songs, I was sitting at the table mostly on my own, watching other people have fun.

I would try to ignore Austin and Kira, but every now and then, my eyes would wander towards them and I couldn't help it. They looked so happy.

_"Cause I'm in the zone, turn off my phone, I have my own agenda."_

I smiled, I loved this song. When I was very certain nobody could see me, I would dance to it. Not that I could do that now.

_"I feel like dancing tonight."_

Definitely.

_"I'm gonna party like it's my civil right.  
It doesn't matter where, I don't care if people stare." _

I sighed. I wish. I wish I could just do that, but I couldn't. And so I rested my chin on my hands and stayed where I was.

"You're not having fun are you." I turned around.

"Wow, Austin, you scared me." I paused. "Where's Kira?" He shrugged and sat down. There was a silence.

"I'm sorry," he said.

I must've looked confused, because he continued: "I really thought you would have fun. I didn't want to ruin your night."

"It's okay Austin. It's not a total waste. I like my dress," I joked. He looked really guilty, and I felt a sting in my heart. I put my hand on his arm. He looked up, looking as surprised at my action as I felt. "It's okay," I repeated. And he just nodded. We just sat there for a minute, neither of us knowing what to say. The song switched, and Austin started smiling. He stood up and went to stand in front of me. Before I could ask him what he was doing, he stuck out his hand, almost like he wanted me to take it. I just raised my eyebrow.

_"Settle down with me.  
Cover me up, cuddle me in." _

"Dance with me, Ally."

I started laughing, but he seemed completely serious. I stopped, staring at him in shock.  
"You know I can't, right?"  
"Yes you can!" He took my hand, pulling me to my feet.

_"Your heart's against my chest,  
Lips pressed to my neck.  
I've fallen for your eyes,  
But they don't know me yet." _

He just stood there, my hand in his, looking at me. Staring at me. And when I looked into his eyes, I suddenly couldn't remember why I had spent my entire night sitting at that table, when I could have been having fun. With my friends. With Austin.

_ "Kiss me, like you wanna be loved."_

I took of my heels, knowing that was the only chance I had of not breaking my neck, and smiled, putting on a brave face.

"Okay."

He took me to the dancefloor, somewhere in the middle, which meant I wasn't in sight as much. The floor was really empty, seeing as everyone that wasn't in a relationship had found a chair by now.

_"Settle down with me,  
And I'll be your safety.  
You'll be my lady." _

Austin placed his hands on my waist and pulled me close to him. I put my arms around his neck. I was really, really nervous. We swayed to the music a little bit, when Austin sighed.

"You're not having fun Ally." I bit my lip. "Look at me."

I did. I looked at him, and I suddenly seemed to have forgotten how to breath, as he looked right in my eyes. We were so… close.

_"I was made to keep your body warm,  
but I'm cold as the wind blows,  
So hold me in your arms."_

He came a little closer, putting his head against mine. I could feel his breath in my hair. I closed my eyes, and just like that, I forgot everybody there. It was just me and Austin. His hands on my waist, his breath in my hair, his cologne and boy scent, the way he slowly moved me at the sound of the music, making sure not to do anything to sudden.

_"Kiss me like you wanna be loved."_

And I felt amazing. I felt like I could take on the world.

_"This feels like I've in love,  
fallen in love."_

And as Ed Sheeran's voice rang in my ears, realization hit me like a train.

_"I've fallen in love."_

* * *

_**_Songs: I feel like dancing by All Time Low and Kiss me by Ed Sheeran


	10. Chapter 10

In that moment, I thought nothing could ever hurt me again. But now I was sitting here, with Austin, Dez and Trish, and I felt like my world had just crumpled.

When I got up this morning, I was in a good mood. Last night was amazing, I'd slept well. And I had to admit the real reason I was in such a good mood: I could still feel Austin's hands on my waist. I could still smell him. And I couldn't stop smiling.

But when I walked into the canteen to get breakfast, my smile faltered. By then, I hadn't realized my world was crushed yet; but everyone in the canteen was dead silent. On the small stage that we had there, stood the head mistress, Mrs. Star. And she didn't look happy.

I spotted my friends and walked towards them very quickly. I shot Trish a questioning look, but she just shrugged. I was just in time, because Mrs. Star started to speak.

"I hope every single one of you has had a nice time last night, at our annual dance." I smiled. "But unfortunately, I have some bad news to temper the enthusiasm." She took a deep breath, almost like she was trying to compose herself. I suddenly got a little cold.

"We have just heard the news that the government has decided to lower the amount of money going towards arts in school. We are no longer getting extra funding. This means we cannot possibly keep up the way we do now." She sighed.

"I am honestly so, so sorry, but from now on, we can no longer afford music and acting lessons. They will not continue. Dancing will no longer be a separate class. It will now be a part of PE."

She continued talking about credits and other things that are probably really important, but I didn't hear any of it. I looked around the canteen. Everyone looked extremely sad, and some had even started to cry.

And I realized that for them, this seemed like the end of their dream. I never wanted to be a real performer anyway, but for them, the end of performing school would mean the end of their future. For the actors, dancers and singers under us, this was a nightmare. Realization dawned upon me.

Singers. Austin.

I turned around, just in time to see Austin storm out of the canteen.

Under normal circumstances, I would have went after him. But I just couldn't really move, so I just let Dez go after him. Trish, who never wanted to do anything in entertainment business, seemed unfazed, but she was the only one.

"Come on, Ally, it's not that bad! They didn't have songwriting class anyway, and you already play piano!" I didn't say anything. She couldn't possibly understand. She couldn't understand how this felt like home, more than home ever felt like home.

And it wasn't just because the people were nicer. It was because I was a part of something. Part of a group, with a love for the same thing. We all had the same goals, and even if we didn't get along personality wise, we always had that thing in common. When I was here, I didn't feel like a freak. I didn't feel like I was stupid for wanting to pursue this path, because here, there were so many people who had chosen the same thing. Who decided they wanted to take that risk.

The rest of the day was bad. Classes continued, but the teacher all seemed down. Ms. Knight, who gave English apart from singing, walked out of class halfway through. And for the first time ever, no one started talking.

There was nothing left to talk about.

Trish tried to cheer me up, but she couldn't, and after a couple of hours, she gave up.

I was on my way to my room, ready to cry in my pillow, when the intercom sounded.

"Will all students please get to the gym? Thank you." I recognized that voice. What in the name of love was Dez doing?

When I got there, the gym was already full. I spotted Trish. She, too, had no idea what was going on. All she knew was that Dez and Austin were standing on the bleachers, looking over the crowd that was forming, holding microphones. Soon enough, Dez started talking.

"Dear fellow students," he said, trying really hard to sound formal. "I know we're all very upset about the news we received earlier, that we would no longer get funding for our entertainment classes. But, I'm here, because I have not lost hope!"

He looked like he expected applause, but it was dead silent in the gym. Everyone looked like they were debating between laughing, crying and just leaving. Then, Austin stepped forward, and I felt my heart lurch. Please don't let him do something that gets him kicked out of school, I prayed silently.

"You probably think we're idiots," he said, and then he paused. It was such a long pause, that I was actually starting to wonder if that might be everything he had to say. But then he continued, and the longer he spoke, the bigger my smile grew.

"We are all very different. Most of us, we don't even like each other. But we have something in common. We love this school. We love art, music, acting. We love dancing, even if we're not all equally good at it."

I laughed at this point, knowing he was talking about me.

"But whatever we're not very good at, we do it anyway. Because we love it. And because we know that here, it will be accepted. Personally, I never thought I would feel at home in some weird school where people eat and sleep at and sing all the time. I never thought going to this school could bring me anything.

But it did. It did for me. For you. And it will, for everyone that follows us. We can't let this little setback change that. We can get funding. Not from the government, but from people. Rich people, that care about art like we do. The only thing we need to do is convince them we're worth it. So, Dez and I have an idea. We propose a talent show. Concert. Funding thing."

He stopped a second. The crowd seemed interested.

"Whatever your talent is, you have one. And you need to use it to convince people to give us money, so we can keep our favourite classes going. Tomorrow, we're having a sign in here during lunch."

"Do it, people. Let's give it a shot. Nothing gained is nothing lost, right?" Dez added, and then, as on cue, the crowd started clapping and cheering. And I clapped and cheered along, feeling really proud of my two boys.

Seeing as Austin and Dez were being swarmed by people with questions, Trish and I decided to let them be. I spent that night with Trish, having a girl night, watching movies. Trish decided she wanted to help organize the money-raising talent show, which I found a good idea, since Austin obviously would have to perform.

I didn't really know what Dez would do, since his thing was more filming and directing. From the directing part of it, I figured he wanted to organize the thing as well, but I didn't tell Trish, because I didn't know if she would still do it if she knew he was involved.

When Trish was fast asleep, I felt my worry grow.

Knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep for a while, I went to my roof. This time, it was empty. I lay on my back, watching the stars. I had always been fascinated with stars. Apparently there was a little bit of star dust in all of us. Wasn't that amazing? I could have a piece of Marilyn Monroe inside of me.

"I knew you would be here. Can't sleep, huh?" the familiar voice asked. I smiled. If anyone would have known I would be here on this particular night, it was him.

"You should be sleeping. You need your strength for the big spring concert next week." Austin came lying next to me, his arm brushing past mine, leaving it tingling.  
"They will cancel it, now, with all the drama."  
"They won't, I asked them." I turned around so I could look at him.

He wasn't kidding.

"Why would you do that?"  
"Because you need to sing." I shook my head, turning away again.  
"It's no longer a performing school. Therefor I do no longer have to overcome my stage fright in order to stay here."  
"Ally, please look at me."

I did, knowing it was a mistake the moment I looked into his eyes. How could I possibly be focussing on what he was saying if he was looking at me like that?

"You need to overcome your stage fright. Not for this school, or for me. For you. Because it's holding you back, Als. You are an amazing singer. And I swear, if you would just show people that, you could have a future. Not just as a songwriter, but as an artist." I didn't say anything.

"You can do this. I promise. I'll be right there by your side. Remember, I can't fix you, but I can promise you you don't have to go through it alone."

I smiled at the reference to the song I sang to him last time we were here together. And before I could stop myself, I laid my head on his shoulder. And before I realized, his arm snuck around my shoulder, pulling me closer to him.

He was warm, comfortable. Safe. He was the only one that could make things right.

"Okay," I whispered. He smiled, not saying anything.

"Everything will be okay, Als. The spring concert, the fundraiser. It will go back to way it was."

I could feel that I was getting sleepy. Perhaps it was the way his voice seemed to sooth me, or the heath that radiated of his body, or the way his thumb was mindlessly making circles on my arm. But my worries were disappearing.

"They won't though, Austin. Everything has changed. But that's okay. Just… As long as it will be okay again." I paused. "Maybe it can even be better than before."  
"It will be better. You'll have me here," Austin joked. I didn't joke back. Because he was right.

"You're almost asleep, aren't you?" he whispered. I didn't respond, again. "Go to sleep, love. It will all be better tomorrow, I promise." My heart fluttered when he called me love. And I smiled. It couldn't be better tomorrow. It was already perfect now.

"You're kind of my nightingale, you know," I muttered.

"What the hell is a nightingale," Austin muttered back, but my head fell on his chest, and I was fast asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

I woke up in my bed. I had no idea how I got from the roof to my bed, and the only explanation I could think of was Austin. He must've carried me. I smiled at the idea.

I went to physics with more optimism than before. In the hallway, people were discussing what they were going to do for the fundraiser. Trish had found out that Dez would be the one managing stuff with her and after het initial freak out, she was now discussing ideas to get people to come.

Which meant she was talking and shooting down anything Dez was trying to say, but it was progress, so I took it. I hadn't seen Austin, but that was okay. Last night was enough to keep me smiling for a good while. I realized it sounded like I was talking about drugs rather than a friend and crush, and I giggled in myself.

During lunch, I decided to see how the sign-ups for the fundraiser were going. It was crazy busy in the gym, which was a good sign. I spotted Trish and Dez, arguing, so naturally, I went over to smooth things out. To my surprise, they weren't talking about the fundraiser. They were talking about me.

They hadn't seen me yet. I stop walking.

"He came walking in with her in his arms, Dez. Said she fell asleep in his arms. Friends don't do that!"  
"They might!" Dez said. His voice was normal, but Trish's voice sounded angry.  
"Not my Ally! She isn't the trusty type, Dez. She cares about him." Dez shrugged.  
"I'm sure she does, and Austin cares about her too, I know that. Look, I would rather have him be with Ally okay, I like Ally, but I saw him kissing Kira and he is my friend, so I am NOT breaking them up."

"What are you talking about?" I interrupted. Trish and Dez swirled around, clearly shocked that I was there.  
"Uhm, hi Ally, how long have you…" Trish started, but I didn't let her finish.  
"Long enough. Now what the hell are you talking about?" I was too upset to even care about my swearing.

Dez walked up to me and took my arms in his hands, looking like he was ready to tell them my puppy had died.  
"I'm sorry Ally. Austin is with Kira now." He looked genuinely sorry for me. And even though it felt like someone just stabbed me in my heart, I couldn't show that. I always knew it was a one-sided crush. I should just be happy he is such a good friend to me.

"I'm talking about the breaking them up part," I said, biting back my tears. Now Trish started to look guilty.  
"I just… I know you like Austin, so I figured that…" Once again, I didn't let her finish.

"Don't!" I said harshly, not realizing that by now, the entire gym was listening to us. "Don't you dare! I know you mean well Trish but you can be such an idiot! Yes, I'm in love with Austin. But that does not mean you can meddle with his happiness." Tears were flooding my eyes and I couldn't be bothered to try and stop them. I was crying because of Austin and Kira, and because of Trish, and the school, and the fear for the spring concert, and even for Dez, although I wasn't sure why.

"Austin means everything to me, Trish. Everything. And all I want for him is to be happy. So please, leave him alone. Yes, I'm in love with Austin, but that's not important. What's important is that he's happy, because seeing him hurt kills me inside, and if you care about me at all, you'll leave him alone!"

I realized I'd been repeating myself, but the words just wouldn't stop. Trish didn't get to answer, because through the piercing silence in the gym, a voice sounded.

"You're in love with me?"

And there I was again, just like the day I met Austin. Staring, unable to move. Weighing my options, weighing the consequences.

And I ran.

But I should have known I could never outrun him. Although it took him all the way to the lockers to finally catch up with me. Grabbing my arm, he forced me to a stop. I was still crying, but I wasn't making a sound, just letting tears roll down my cheeks.

Cheeks that were red with embarrassment. Because I'd just told one of my best friends that I was in love with him. I'd just ruined the friendship that, at the moment, was everything to me.

"Ally…"

"No," I cried, "don't bother. I know, okay, I know you don't feel like that, I know I'm just your friend, and honestly, I never wanted you to know, I was just trying to protect you from Trish because she can get so mean, and I don't know what got over me, I just talk a lot when I'm nervous, and I didn't know you were there, and I'm so sorry…"

Halfway through the last sentence, I turned around. I was sure he'd heard enough, and all I wanted to do was go to my room and disappear. I was planning on finishing my apology, but just like the day I first met him, he interrupted me. But this time, it wasn't with his judging look.

Just as I was about to turn around, I felt his hand grabbing mine, and yanking it, and I could feel my body swirling around, unable to keep in its place under the pressure that his hand was extending to mine. To say I fell around was probably a better description than to say I turned around.

I fell right into him, his eyes staring into mine. I couldn't read them, didn't have the time, as I suddenly realized he was close, so close, too close…

And then I couldn't think anything anymore, as his lips crashed into mine, making my heart jump and my stomach turn, sending butterflies through me. I closed my eyes, not able to move away or do anything except _be _there, with him, his hands on my waist, his lips on mine, finally understanding what people meant when they said they felt fireworks.

My hands, not seeming to be controlled by me, travelled to the back of his neck, pulling him closer, to which he seemed happy to oblige. My lips moved in perfect sync with his, like they were made for each other, like they never kissed another girl…

And that was it, the word that made me snap back into reality, got my feet back on the earth, made me remember why I was crying in the first place. I pulled away forcefully. I could see the confusion on his face. I shook my head, starting to sob.

"You…we… I can't…Kira…" I could barely form a sentence, but I had to get this out. "We can't.. Kira, she's nice.. can't do this to her…You…You have to…make a choice…"

And I ran away, away from confusion and pain and pure bliss, I ran from the person that made me so, so happy, because right now, he was just tearing me to pieces. And I ran so fast, that I didn't even hear him answering me.

"I already did."


	12. Chapter 12

I didn't sleep that night. At all. But I couldn't go to the roof, because I might just run into the reason I couldn't sleep.

Although that wasn't hundred per cent true. Sure, I was upset about the whole Austin thing. I wished it could just go back to the way it was, but I knew everything had changed. I knew that I had changed everything.

Nevertheless, I didn't regret the kiss. It was the most perfect first kiss I could have ever wished for, and I had already ruined our friendship, so better go out with a bang, right?

The biggest reason I was completely awake and absolutely horrified was because the spring concert was tomorrow. I knew I could back out, but I didn't want to. I wanted to do this. I wanted to make Austin proud.

And myself too, of course.

God, I wanted to sleep so badly. A smile appeared on my face as I remembered the last time I couldn't sleep, and just having Austin near made me fall asleep like a baby. He really was my nightingale.

I remembered that he hadn't known what a nightingale was. Obviously he would know it was a bird, but he probably just hadn't understood why I called him my nightingale. He probably didn't like history as much as I did. During the Romantic era, the nightingale represented the poet. Not only was the bird, with his beautiful song, a poet in his own right: he was often considered "the master of a superior art that could inspire the human poet". Austin inspired me.

The second reason is that the nightingale represents the beauty of nature. Its song is often said to calm people. Move them, soften them. Bring them peace.

And this was the part were Austin really became my nightingale. He brought me peace, sang me to sleep…  
I realized that actually sounded quite good, and wrote it down in my songbook. And then I just kept writing and writing, seeming unable to stop.

Dawn came and I got up as soon as the sunlight started cracking through the curtains. I hadn't slept at all, but I couldn't spend today laying around. I had a performance to give. Just the thought of it tightened my throat, and my breathing sped up. I scolded at myself. I had to get a grip, or this would be a disaster.

I got ready and headed to the gym with Trish. She had helped with the decoration, so she had to be there earlier, and since I was already awake, I decided to go with her. The gym looked stunning. A platform was put in to make the stage look like an actual stage, and there were colourful lights and sound equipment. It was beautiful. And scary.

I tried to help Trish with the last touch, but I had to admit I wasn't being much of a help, dropping everything and constantly turning away to chew on my hair. Normally, Trish would yell at me and tell me to leave, but today, she didn't say anything. That's how I knew it was really bad. If Trish felt sorry for you, your life must be terrible.

And maybe she was feeling a little bit guilty, since she was the reason for my outburst and with that practically the reason for the mess I made.

And then it started. I found out that I was one of the last people to perform, which meant, hypothetically, that I could watch the other performers. Which I couldn't, because I was too busy dying of nerves. I was sitting in the audience, knowing I should probably be paying attention, looking for tips from people that actually enjoyed this, but I couldn't focus. Until I heard a familiar name.

"Please welcome, Austin Moon!"

I knew he was going to perform. I knew he'd be here. But I couldn't help but stiffen at the sound of his name. And then he came on, with just a guitar, looking dashing and sad. I wondered why he was sad. Was it because I'd ruined our friendship? Had Kira seen the kiss and dumped him? Well, that one wasn't on me, he was definitely the one to blame for that.

He sat down, looking into the audience, adjusting his microphone. It was completely silent in the crowd and not just because they were waiting for him to start. Yesterday was clearly still in everyone's head.

And then he started playing. The first few words went past me, but then I recognized the tune. He had made it into a balled with just a guitar, but the lyrics were still the same. I hadn't ever really, actually listened to it before, it was just the kind of song I turned up when I heard it on the radio.

_"Yeah the ink may stain my skin,  
And my jeans may all be ripped.  
I'm not perfect, but I swear  
I'm perfect for you."_

I listened to the lyrics now. And I focused. On the song, on Austin. His eyes kept scanning the crowd, obviously searching for someone. Maybe Kira? I hadn't actually seen her around anywhere. But then, his eyes caught mine, and he smiled. He stopped looking around, he just looked right at me, and I was stuck between feeling uncomfortable and… honoured, maybe, that he still dared to look at me after all I'd confessed to him. After all I'd done.

"_And there´s no guarantee,  
that this will be easy.  
It´s not a miracle you need, believe me.  
Yeah I´m no angel, I´m just me.  
But I will love you endlessly.__"_

He still hadn't stopped looking at me. Could he possibly be singing to me? No, that wasn't possible. He didn't like me like that.  
And then the song changed. It slowed down, and I recognized this song.

_"Nothing goes as planned,  
Everything will break.  
People say goodbye, in their own special way."_

But then again, why did he kiss me if he didn't like me?

_"Oh, you're in my veins, and I cannot get you out.  
Oh, you're all I taste, at night inside of my mouth.  
Oh, you run away,  
cause I am not what you found."_

I felt tears burning again, but I bit them back. I needed to stop thinking about him. This wasn't the right time. I was about to go on stage, for the love of god.

_"Everything will change,  
Nothing stays the same.  
But oh, you're in my veins.  
And I cannot get you out."_

And then he was done. He had sounded amazing and the crowd was clapping and cheering like crazy. He smiled at, slowly. He seemed a little unsure about it. I gulped, turning my head away.

And then I didn't have time to think about it, because there was only one person left before it was my time. I went backstage, and of course, Austin was standing right there.

But at that moment, the only thing I cared about was that stage and the fact that I really, really didn't want to go on it.

"Ally."

"I can't do it, Austin. I really tried, I wanted to make you proud, but there's no way I'm going up on that stage and…" I didn't even know for sure why I was talking to him, pretending nothing happened. Perhaps it was because I wish nothing had happened.

Perhaps it was because in that moment, I just really needed him.

"I will always be proud of you, Als," he said softly. "I believe in you. I believe you can do this. Look at me. I know a lot has happened between us, and I need to ask you a serious question. Do you trust me?" I didn't even have to think about that.

"Yes." He almost looked relieved at that answer. But I did. I did trust him. With my life.

"Do you honestly think, that I would let you go on that stage, if I believed you would make a fool out of yourself on there? Do you think I would let you go through that?"

"No, you wouldn't. You'll always be there to protect me," I said, again without a hint of doubt.  
"Exactly." He wanted to say something else, but he was interrupted.

"Please welcome, Ally Dawson!"

And so I looked at Austin one last time. I saw the look in his eyes, and I felt like maybe, it would be okay.

I went up on the stage, hearing the applause, that I was probably only getting because people were feeling bad for me. And I saw them. I saw all those people, sitting there, expecting me to be amazing.

And just when the music started, I realized I couldn't do it. My hands had started to shake. This time, I didn't even need to weigh my options. Ally who-ran-of-stage Dawson was better than Ally who-fainted-on-stage Dawson.

I ran.

* * *

**Songs: Endlessly by The Cab and In my veins by Andrew Belle

And yes, I did my research on the nightingale.


	13. Chapter 13

But I didn't get very far. The moment I turned around, I heard a voice. A voice singing. Singing the song I was supposed to be singing. But it definitely wasn't my voice singing.

"_Stop hiding out in the shadows,  
scared to show the world you exist."_

I felt like I couldn't move, but somehow, I made myself turn around. Austin gave me a small smile.

_"Don't lock yourself in the darkness,  
the world is so much brighter than this."_

He held out his hand, but I couldn't take it. I couldn't do anything.

_"If you never take a shot,  
You never gonna win.  
So turn it all around." _

Austin moved closer. He grabbed my hand. His face was almost as close as it was when he kissed me.

No, I had to stop thinking about that. I had to forget about that.

_"And break down the walls,  
Don't be afraid to let them fall.  
Break down the walls,  
And you can dare to have it all.  
Come on and give it everything you can,  
Take a chance, make a stand,  
and break down the walls."_

He stopped singing. Slowly, he lowered his head so that his mouth was near my ear. I could feel his breath and I stopped breathing myself.

"Look in my eyes. Pretend it's just me."

And so I did. Slowly, I opened my mouth. And to my surprise, actual sound came out. He sang with me, but softly, because I was barely audible.

_"Don't wanna watch them tumble down.  
Feel all the doubt."_

And then, as if it was a magic trick, the people disappeared. It was just me and Austin, my hand in his, him smiling at me. I could drown in his eyes.

_"Just come on out,  
And let the light come pouring in!"_

He seemed to realize his plan worked, because he let go of my hand. I wanted to reach for it, desperately even, but I didn't. Closing my eyes, I ignored him walking off the stage, and I continued. My voice was shaking, but it was audible. I was actually singing on stage.

_"Just break down the walls,  
Don't be afraid to let them fall.  
Break down the walls."_

My voice was growing stronger. I opened my eyes. People weren't laughing at me, or looking bored. They seemed to be…enjoying themselves. I looked to the side, earning me a thumbs up from Austin.

And I realized he really had been the one that got me to break down these walls.

As soon as the last note sounded, I could hear the cheering. I made a little bow before turning around and running of the stage.

"I did it!" I squealed, and I launched myself at Austin. He caught me, laughing. His arms wrapped around my waist as he pulled me close. I buried my face in his neck, my arms around him. I could feel his breath in my hair and I could smell his cologne and it took me back to the first time I had been so close to him. The first time I had ever felt like I could do anything. Because if I could dance, what couldn't I do?

And now, I was actually performing.

And it was all because of the guy that, when I met him, I would have described as stuck up and guarded. But then I realized, that although he was neither of these things, right now, he wasn't my favourite person in the world.

Or he wasn't supposed to be.

And so I let him go, gazing at him for a second. He looked at me. He seemed to realize why I'd pulled away. His eyes had turned dark brown and I felt a sting. I never wanted to be the reason for that darkness. And yet, here I was.

"Ally, I have to talk to you…" But he didn't continue, and I didn't dare to say a word, afraid to break down.

"Ally, you were amazing!"

Trish had always had a talent for interrupting. Normally, I would've shooed her away. But now, she came at just the right time.  
"Let's go celebrate," I told her. Then, I turned to Austin.

"I don't want things to change," he said softly. I bit my lip. The words that I spoke next hurt me like a knife stabbing me in my heart, and I knew that my heart was now not cracked but shattered to pieces, and I tried biting back the tears.

"They already have."

* * *

**Song: Break down the walls from Austin&Ally


	14. Chapter 14

I didn't end up celebrating with Trish. I ended up going back to my room, laying on my back on the floor and listening to Taylor Swift songs while stuffing my face with chocolate ice cream.

That is the thing girls do when they're hurting over boys, okay.

For some reason, I wished I could at least be angry at Austin. It would make it easier to get over him.

But I couldn't.

Because when you think about it, he didn't actually do anything wrong. The only thing I could think of that he shouldn't have done was kiss me, but I couldn't be mad at him for that because it had felt so right. The one that should really be mad at him for that is Kira. When he kissed Kira he didn't even know I liked him. So I had no reason to be angry at him.

And after everything, he had still been an amazing friend to me, saving my ass on that stage and being there for me. If the roles would have been reversed, I didn't think I could have handled this with as much grace as he did.

But all of this didn't make me feel any better. Because I lost my best friend. I felt a little guilty to Trish for calling Austin my best friend, but if I was really honest with myself, it was the truth. I loved Trish, but she never got me like Austin did. He seemed to read me like a book. I never had to explain myself to him, or be afraid to be myself.

And I lost the guy I was deeply in love with. By now, I'd given up on lying to myself, saying it was just a little crush.

After spending the day on the floor, I'd moved to my bed, hoping I could catch some sleep. But of course, that wasn't happening.

I couldn't go to my roof. But I definitely couldn't stay here. I would go crazy. And so I slipped out of the room and went to the only other place I could think of: the classroom where the piano was.

I pressed some keys, and without realizing it, I started to play a familiar tune. The tune to the song I'd written not long ago. And right now, it felt so relevant, so _true_, that I couldn't help but start singing it, softly, with tears in my eyes. But also, with a smile on my face.

_"I can't sleep tonight, wide awake and so confused.  
Everything's in line, but I am bruised.  
I need a voice to ego, I need a light to take me home.  
I kinda need a hero,  
Is it you?"_

*Austins POV*

When I couldn't sleep, I liked wandering around the school. Normally, I would've ended up on the roof, but I figured Ally might be there, and I was probably the last person she'd want to see.

I really screwed this one up.

I wish I could just explain to her. But on the other hand, it might not make a difference. I couldn't say that I didn't want to kiss Kira, that she kissed me, because that was not strictly true. I did kiss Kira. But if I knew Ally was an option, I wouldn't have.

That sounded stupid, and it would never make Ally forgive me. If I told her I was planning on using Kira to get over her, she would hate me even more. And I understood why. Now I thought about it, it wasn't my time of greatest judgement. But I liked Kira. Really liked her. She could make me laugh, she was nice, she was pretty, and she seemed to like me too.

And I figured if I spent enough time with her, I could fall in love with her.

And fall out of love with Ally. Because she didn't need a guy like me. She needed someone without complications, that didn't have to watch every step because he might get kicked out of school and shipped off to the other side of the country. She didn't need a guy with walls.

Even though those walls seemed pretty much gone as soon as Ally was involved. I didn't know why I trusted her so much. And why I felt the overwhelming need to protect her, from everything. She was the best friend I'd ever had, and I wasn't planning to ruin that with falling in love with her.

I promised myself I wouldn't fall in love with her, the day she caught me singing her song. Because I could tell, right away, that she was special. Innocent. And I would just break that innocence, and I couldn't do that to her. No, I promised myself I would just be her friend, protect her from everything that I possibly could.

I promised myself I would never hurt her.

I broke all of these promises. Yeah, made quite a mess of them, honestly.

I sighed, turning a corner, making my way to the music room. I figured I could play some piano, calm myself. It used to work. But I hadn't played the piano in a long time.

A piano is not the kind of instrument you move very easy, and when you move every 6 months, all your belongings have to be moved easy. They have to fit in a box, because most of them wouldn't even get out of the box before you went on to the next place.

And then I heard it, snapping me out of my thought immediately. Music. From a piano. I got closer, holding my breath, making sure I didn't make a sound.

_"Somebody speak to me, 'cause I'm feeling like hell.  
Need you to answer me, I'm overwhelmed.  
I need a voice to echo, I need a light to take me home,  
I need a star to follow, I don't know.  
I never see the forest for the trees, I could really use your melody.  
Baby I'm a little blind, I think it's time,  
for you, to find me." _

Her eyes were closed. Even in the dark, I could tell her cheeks were wet. She'd been crying. It felt like my heart was squeezed by an iron fist. I figured I was the reason for her tears.

When I first saw her sad, when she told me about her stage fright, I'd promised myself I'd never be the reason for her tears.

Another promise I broke.

_"Can you be my nightingale,  
Sing to me, I know you're there.  
You could be my sanity,  
Bring me peace, sing me to sleep.  
Say you'll be my nightingale."_

I swallowed hard. Nightingale. I was her nightingale. I had never understood what she'd meant with that, figured it was just the sleep talking, but I knew now. I was her nightingale.

_"I don't know what I'd do without you,  
Your words a like a whisper, come through.  
As long as you're here with me tonight,  
I'm good."_

And I'd be damned if I didn't stay it. It didn't matter what it would take. I had to get her to forgive me. I wanted to be her nightingale. I knew I could be. I just had to show her.

And so I stormed away, back to my room. I had no longer time to wander the halls without a purpose: I had a plan to plot.

_"Can you be my nightingale, feel so close,  
I know you're there."_

* * *

**Song: Nightingale by Demi Lovato, it's my favorite song ever so listen to it.


	15. Chapter 15

I was drowning in things to do. I had to admit, I was looking for things to do, I was desperately looking for them, because I needed to be crazily busy. It took my mind away from things.

And from things, I meant Austin, and the fundraiser.

I finally felt like I might be able to perform on my own. Not that I was planning on performing during the fundraiser. There had been so many people to sign up that we were running out of time. So, I had told Trish I would just help her and Dez with setting everything up. I didn't have to perform.

I didn't tell them that part of the reason I didn't have to perform, didn't want to, really, was that I was still really scared. I was scared that I would mess it up. I was scared that without Austin there to pull me through, I wouldn't make it through.

But nobody had to know that.

I hadn't spoken to Austin lately. Sometimes, I caught him staring at me in class or walking my way when I was in the hallway, but I did the best I could to go out of his way and he wasn't very persistent. I hadn't even seen him in the last couple of days, so I'd figured he'd just given up and was now avoiding me as well.

It killed me, avoiding him. I felt really bad for him, too. Dez was so busy that anybody hardly saw him, and Kira seemed to be avoiding Austin just as much as I was. The only reason I still saw Trish was because I followed her around when she was doing stuff for the fundraiser.

I still didn't really know why I was so keen on keeping him away from me. I kept telling myself he didn't do anything wrong, and that was, strictly spoken, kind of true.

But if I was honest with myself, I had to admit that part of the reason I hadn't reached out to him was, that he hadn't reached out to me either. Maybe he didn't care as much about me as I did about him. Maybe what we had hadn't been special.

Maybe it was just special to me.

The morning of the fundraiser came faster than I would've liked. I was nervous. If we wouldn't get funding, this school would turn into just a normal school and I wasn't sure if my parents would keep me here then. Because I could go to a normal school at home as well, and then I could help my dad in the store. I just really didn't want to go to a normal school, where I would lose Trish, and where I would probably get bullied again.

"You ready, Ally?" Trish exclaimed. She seemed really excited and I had no idea why.  
"Isn't it a little early for you?" I asked.

It was 9:30 a.m. On a Saturday, that was basically the middle of the night for Trish.

"I'm just excited for the fundraiser. You know, I really liked this managing thing. I think it might be my calling. It combines my two biggest passions." I raised an eyebrow.  
"Music and helping people?" She looked at me like I'd just asked her if she owned a unicorn.

"No, money and bossing people around. Now let's go!" I followed her towards the garden.

We'd decided to have the fundraiser outside. The weather was beautiful, something we had counted on since we lived in Miami. We had put on a stage, quite a big one too, and the garden was beautifully decorated. There were tables and chairs for the guests, and behind the stage was something that could pass for a dressing room.

If you used your imagination.

"Hi Ally! Are you excited?" Dez seemed just as excited as Trish. What was wrong with these people?  
"Yeah, I guess. I just hope we'll find someone to fund our classes," I said.

"Sure we will! And Austin is performing, are you exci…." Dez couldn't finish his sentence, since Trish had jabbed her elbow in his side. My smile fell.  
"Sorry Ally," Trish muttered. "He's just an idiot." I wasn't sure if she meant Dez or Austin, but I didn't ask her to elaborate.

We were just finished with the finishing touches when people started to come in. I didn't recognize anyone, but they were all adults and they were all dressed like they had money.  
"Where did you get these people?" I asked, but Trish was too busy yelling at the sound guy to hear me. She really would make an excellent manager.

People were starting to find their places, and I could tell everyone was getting anxious to start. "Ally?" I looked up.  
"Kira? Hi…" I wanted to add something, but I didn't know what to say. I ruined her relationship before it even began, what could she possibly have to say to me?

"I just…" She paused. "I just wanted to wish you luck. I know about your stage fright."  
"I'm not performing. Wait, how do you know about my stage fright?" She wasn't in my singing class. Actually, she wasn't in any of my performing classes, so how could she know?

"Austin told me," she said, smiling. "I have gotten to know quite a lot about you that way, actually." I couldn't help but look surprised, and she saw it. "Look Ally, I didn't just came here to wish you luck. I couldn't help but notice that I haven't seen you around Austin a lot lately and I actually wanted to know if everything is okay between you two?"

I sat down at the nearest table, putting my head in my hands and sighing. Kira sat down next to me.

"I take that as a no. Look, I know it's really none of my business, but I care about Austin. I always knew it wouldn't work out between us. I just… hoped, I guess. But I knew he was in love with you since I first met him. It's in his eyes. You can really tell a lot from his eyes, you know?" She smiled sadly, and I felt bad for her.

I wasn't the only one that had lost him when I pulled the stunt in the gym.

"I'm sorry Kira, for ruining everything for you," I said softly. She shook her head.  
"No, that's the point. You didn't ruin anything for me, Ally. He would've gone to you eventually anyway. You actually saved me by finishing it before it could actually develop into something more. You saved me from heartbreak. I will be fine." She paused a couple of seconds.

"But Austin…"  
"Won't," I finished for her. She shook her head.

"I don't know why you two are not on talking terms. But I know you're not over him. I can tell by the way your eyes start twinkling when I talk about him. Whatever you're mad about, you need to get over it and forgive him." She got up.

"You're everything he has, Ally. He needs you. And I'm pretty sure you need him too. Don't let some stupid mistake ruin this for you two." And then she walked away, without even giving me a chance to respond.

The fundraiser started. But I couldn't focus on the talent. I was thinking about what Kira said. I wasn't mad at him. And I couldn't even come up with a logical explanation as to why we hadn't talked. Keyword: logical.

I knew it came from my side. I knew that if he thought that there was a chance of me forgiving him, he would've came to me already. I knew he would be more than happy to go back to normal. But I didn't want it to go back to normal. I knew that everything had changed. I realized that I just had to make sure it would change the right way, and the only way to make sure of that was to talk to him.

I promised myself I would talk to him after the fundraiser. I would've gone to look for him now, but Dez walked on stage, and I was really curious as to what he was going to show us.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I hope you've been enjoying your day so far. We have a lot more to come, but right now, I would just like to point your attention towards the reason we're all here." He talked about the school a bit, why it was so special, why we suddenly needed the money now.

"Now I can tell you all about the talent at this school, but we're already showing you," he continued. "And I can tell you all about why this school is so important and special. But I'd much rather show you that, as well." A beamer came down and I smiled. I knew he was doing something with that video camera of his.

People applauded, and the video started.

It was a video of the school. He had filmed classes. There were people dancing, we saw part of an acting class that was so intense almost everyone in the room was crying. I could hear the audience gasping. There were more shots of people laughing, having fun, making music. And I could feel myself smiling. This was the school like I wanted to remember it. Where everyone had the same goal and everyone understood the other's passion.

And then a familiar tune started. My eyes opened wide.

There, on the screen, were Austin and I . Behind the keyboard in my room. I hadn't been aware that I'd ever been filmed. But this was definitely me. The song we were playing was Illusion. It had been when we hadn't been friends for long and Austin was practicing my song to sing in class.

I was teaching him the chords, but he was just goofing off. He was bumping into me, poking my sides. And I watched myself look at him, I watched myself giggling and laughing and blushing when the on screen Austin told me how awesome my song was.

Then we were both silent, focused on our notes. Austin didn't place his hands right and he touched my hand. We both stopped and looked at each other. Then we laughed.

And then the screen went black. I saw the familiar mop of blonde hair appear on the side of the stage. Austin sat behind the piano, and smiled at the audience.

Slowly, he spoke. "I have written this song for a very special girl. She knows who she is." His face was sad.

"And I just wanted to say that I'm really, really sorry for hurting you. I told you I would always be there for you, and I wasn't. But I want you to know that whatever happens, I'll never forget everything you've taught me."

The audience aww'd.

And then he started playing the piano.


	16. Chapter 16

_"Should've kissed you there,  
Should've held your face.  
I should've watched those eyes,  
Instead of run in place."_

I couldn't keep my eyes from him. He actually wrote a song. For me. And he looked so perfect, sitting there behind the piano.

_"Should've held my ground,  
I could've been redeemd.  
For every second chance  
That changed its mind on me.  
I should've spoken up,  
I should've proudly claimed  
That my head's to blame,  
For all my heart's mistakes."_

Other instruments were starting to play, but I couldn't pay attention to anyone else than Austin. The music was changing from simple and sad, to something bigger, with a lot of impact, as Austin looked right at me, singing the next lines.

_"But oh, I'm staring at the mess I made.  
I'm staring at the mess I made.  
I'm staring at the mess I made,  
As you turn, you take your heart  
and walk away."_

And then the music changed again. Same notes and chords, but the melody changed a little. I recognized it and I couldn't stop myself from smiling. He had made a mash-up. The song he'd written, and our songs. The ones that meant something to me.

_"I still love you,  
You're everything to me, I hope you know.  
When the road is long and it's dark as the night,  
If you get too scared, just hold me tight.  
You're the only one that can make things right."_

It was the song I sang to him, that night on the roof. When he was so upset, and my heart was breaking from seeing him that way. When I just wanted to fix him. And I couldn't.

_"But whatever you do – I'll be two steps behind you.  
Wherever you go – I'll be there to remind you,  
That it only takes a minute of your precious time,  
to turn around, and I'll be two steps behind."_

The song we sang when we were in detention. The first detention I'd ever gotten. And I'd felt so guilty. And he had started to play the guitar, singing for me, without any reason. And I was unable to stop myself from singing along. And it suddenly didn't feel so weird, singing in front of another person; because this person was Austin.

_"But oh, I'm staring at the mess I made  
Yeah I'm staring at the mess I made._

_And it's you, and it's you.  
And it's falling down, as you walk away.  
And it's on me now, as you go."_

As he was singing the part of his own song, he had locked his eyes with mine again, and I couldn't look away. But then, he started another song. The song I thought he never heard.

_"I can be your nightingale, sing to you,  
You'll know I'm there.  
I can be your sanity, bring you peace, sing you to sleep,  
Yes, I could be your nightingale._

_But oh, I'm staring at the mess I made."_

I could now feel tears burning. He heard it. He must've been in the hall when I snuck out at night to play that song. He had been there, watching me cry. And he'd remembered the lyrics. And he'd twisted them. Because he wanted it to be okay again. And he wanted it just as much as I wanted it.

_"This feels like I've fallen in love,  
Fallen in love,  
Fallen in love with a careless man's careful daughter,  
And she is the best thing,  
That's ever been mine."_

The song we danced to. When he had made me feel like I could do anything. And the song that prompted me to tell him about my parents. Just then, I realized how many things I'd told him, or showed him, that nobody else knew. How he was maybe the only person who knew who I was. Who I truly, truly was.

_"So I'm staring at the mess I made."_

This wasn't one of our songs. These were his words. The music died down, and it was just Austin and the piano. And he was looking at me again. As if he was trying to tell me something.

_"I'm staring at the mess I made,  
yeah I'm staring at the mess I made."_

And slowly, I smiled. I got the message.

_"As you turn, you take your heart  
And walk away."_

As soon as the music stopped, and I saw Austin getting up to leave stage, I ran.

But this time, I wasn't running away.

And so I ran backstage, where Trish and Dez were standing, looking at me with a knowing look in their eyes. So they were a part of this. I panicky looked around. I couldn't find him. Where was he?

And then I saw him appear from the stage, looking at the ground. I didn't say anything. I couldn't. There wasn't anything left to say. He had said it all. And I ran towards him.

"Ally, I…" He didn't get to say anything, as I flung myself in his arms. His arms instinctively wrapped around my waist, as I buried my face in his shoulder. "I'm so sorry for everything," he whispered in my ear, finishing his sentence.

"No," I whispered back. "No, don't be. It's not your fault. It's just.. I can't…Just…" I backed up, looking in his eyes, and I didn't want to talk. I didn't want him to explain. I just wanted to be there with him.

"Just kiss me."

And he did. And it was magical, and wonderful, and _right_. And I knew, in that moment, that everything would be okay between us. I hadn't lost him. If anything, we had gotten closer.

We didn't have time to talk about anything. Because it was time for the verdict.

It was time to find out if people were willing to fund our performing classes.

Trish and Dez were walking around, along with some teachers, to talk to people. They talked to a lot of people, but they didn't look particularly happy. I stood on the side of the stage. Austin was next to me, holding my hand. But although it calmed me a little bit, not even having him there could make my worries disappear.

"It'll be fine," he muttered in my ear, letting go of my hand so he could wrap his arm around my waist.  
"You don't know that for sure," I answered softly.

"No, but I've told you many times before that things would be fine, and have I ever been wrong?" Despite everything, I smiled.  
"No. But there's a first time for everything."

"You've got that right," he said, and I didn't ask him what he meant, because from the way his grip tightened around me, I knew exactly what he was talking about.

When Mrs. Star called all the students to the stage, we met up with Dez and Trish and walked on. Ready for the verdict. Mrs. Star started her speech.

"Students, first of all, I want to thank all of you for what you did. You all care about this school so much and you have no idea what that means to me."  
I could tell she was getting emotional, and I couldn't help but swallow too. I grabbed Austin's hand and squeezed it. When I looked up at him, he was smiling at me reassuringly.

"Now a lot of people that were here today helped us out a lot, but there is one couple that made it possible for us the continue our performing classes." Everyone started cheering, including me, but Mrs. Star managed to get us silent again. "I would like to thank the Moons for funding us for the following years."

My eyes widened in realization. Moons. Austin.

"I told you it would be fine," he smirked.  
"You knew?" I shrieked. "You knew this? You never told me your parents are rich! You knew we'd gotten the funding? I was dying with nerves, why didn't you tell me?"  
"Cause you're a blabber mouth and then it wouldn't have been a big announcement," he answered, shrugging.  
"I hate you!"  
"No you don't."  
"Yes I do."  
"You love me." He looked so smug, that I had to laugh. His face turned fake hurt, and I smiled.  
"I do love you."  
"I love you too." He got closer to me and I smiled, bracing myself for the kiss, aching for it, really, when Trish pulled us apart.

"What are you waiting for? We need a song to sing! To celebrate!" I smiled.  
"I have the perfect song." I grabbed a guitar, and gave another one to Austin. He nodded. That boy needed to stop with the mind reading, it was getting creepy.

* * *

**Main song: The mess I made by Parachute  
Mashed with: Kiss me by Ed Sheeran, Mine by Taylor Swift, Two steps behind by Def Leppard, I can't fix you by Sasha Pieterse and Nightingale by Demi Lovato


	17. Epiloque

We sat down on stage, most students still gathered around us. And then I started playing.

_"All I knew this morning when I woke up,  
Is I know something now, that I didn't before.  
And all I've seen since 18 hours ago is brown eyes and your freckles  
and your smile, in the back of my mind making me feel like,"_

I changed green eyes to brown eyes and I could see Austin smirking at that. He joined in with me.

_"I just wanna know you better now, know you better now, know you better now.  
Just wanna know you.  
Because all I know is we said hello,  
And your eyes look like coming home.  
And all I know is a simple name, and everything has changed.  
All I know is you held the door,  
You'll be mine and I'll be yours.  
All I know since yesterday is  
everything has changed."_

I couldn't help but look at Austin as I sang. He was smiling, focusing his attention on his guitar, as he was definitely leading the music part: I was just playing the easy chords. There was no melody in my part. I stopped singing, and Austin took over.

_"And all my walls, stood tall, painted blue.  
but I'll take them down, take them down,  
and open up the door for you."_

I joined him again. So did the rest of the school. He looked at me, smiling, and I felt butterflies. I never knew one person could do this to me.

_"Cause all I know is we said hello,  
So dust off your highest hopes.  
All I know is pouring rain,  
and everything has changed."_

It was magical. He was magical. And I was happy that it didn't go back to the way it was. Because yes, everything had changed. And nothing could ever be better than this. And I could never love anyone more than him. And I could never be happier than I was right here, right now.

_"All I know is a new found grace,  
All my days, I'll know your face_.  
_And all I know is,  
everything has changed."_

* * *

**Song is Everything has changed by Taylor Swift ft. Ed Sheeran.


	18. Author's note

So that was it! My very first story, finished.

I'm not a writer, I just wrote this for fun because I was bored during the holidays, and I'm so happy you guys seemed to enjoy it. I know it's not really long, but I'm never one for dragging the plot and I didn't want to fall into too much of a cliche storyline.

I'd like to apologize for any grammar or spelling mistakes in this story, English is not my native language and spelling check doesn't notice everything.

If you enjoyed the story, please let me know, and if you didn't.. Well, you probably wouldn't have come very far and I'd imagine you wouldn't be reading this. If you have any tips for me, however, please let me know as well!

Thanks again guys!

Love, Lou


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